What Should I Do After An Auto Accident?

Auto accidents shatter more than windshields. They destroy lives, hopes and dreams.

While a good body shop can make your car look like new, repairs to the human body are more difficult. The dollar amount of damage to your car can be precisely calculated, human damages, such as pain and suffering, impaired physical ability and lost opportunities are far more complex.

Most importantly, your right to recover for your injuries may be affected by the action taken, or not taken, after the accident.

First, you need to gather as much information as possible about the accident, the way it occurred, and the parties involved. Witnesses may need to be located and professionally interviewed while their memories are still fresh.

The physical damage to the cars should be carefully photographed before any repairs are made. In certain types of cases, we may even want a mechanical engineer or accident reconstruction specialist to examine the cars for critical evidence used to establish the cause of the accident and the way in which the injuries occurred.

Equally as important is receiving the right medical care, both evaluation and treatment. While some doctors "don't want to get involved" in personal injury cases, others are glad to write the necessary reports and testify at trial, if the case gets that far.

Your ability to make a claim for personal injury rests upon three factors:

1. The first is Liability - That is, who caused the accident and is
   legally responsible;
   
2. Second is the establishment of an amount of damages to which you are legally entitled, and;
   
3. Third, the collectability of the damages ... specifically what sources, such as insurance or individual assets, are available for payment of a settlement or damage award.

As attorneys we help our clients establish the liability, evaluate and prove the damages, and collect the settlement or judgment. We handle a lot of the details, and are prepared to help our clients get through the hardships and stress created by an auto accident.